Han Solo
A witty smuggler hired by Ben Kenobi and Luke Skywalker for a transport mission to Alderaan, Han Solo becomes swept up in the Rebel Alliance's fight against the Galactic Empire. Eventually, he becomes one of the Alliance's most revered heroes.
Han Solo accomplishes something amazing in that first Star Wars movie, as a character. His effortless swagger jumps off the screen showing us that even in this world of magical laser-sword wielding Jedis, some of the coolest characters will be just regular folks who can fly fast and shoot faster.
The coolness of Han Solo has persisted and inspired characters for 50 years. Just picturing him – the hair, the vest, the aloofness – oozes cool to me, someone who has missed out on most Star Wars media.
Han Solo is one of those pop culture icons that leaks through the media they are from into the general consciousness. Even if you've never seen Star Wars, you've undoubtedly heard "I love you" "I know", or 12 parsecs, or even Han Shot First.
So how do translate that cool to Pathfinder?
Keys to the Character
Thousand Year Bird
The millennium falcon sits alongside the Starship Enterprise and the Battlestar Galactica when it comes to famous fictional spaceships. Just by looking at its iconic shape you are sure the Kessel Run is a breeze.
What A Blast!
In a world where laser swords exist, you really gotta be good with a blaster to get noticed. The best way to do that? Shoot first.
Smug Outfit
When we think of Star Wars Jedis, we think of robes. When we think Bounty Hunters, we think jetpacks. When we think smugglers, it's the vest. Does every smuggler wear a vest? No, but the cool one does.
I Bent My Wookie
As much as he likes to act like a loner, Han isn't much without his friends. He's made a lot of allies over the years – including his faithful first mate Chewbacca – and he would likewise do anything for them.
One of the key ways we want to build characters on Pop Culture Pathfinder is to focus on what makes them different or special. There are some versions of a Han Solo build that end up like any generic Gunslinger or Swashbuckler. So why Han?
Well a Han Solo build gives us the opportunity to focus on some actions and skills that are often overlooked for the sake of optimization: driving. Luckily, we're going for flavor over min-maxing, so we can make Han the best driver / pilot Golarian has ever seen.
This will primarily be achieved through the Trick Driver dedication – which offers a few nice feats, but a lot of great skills.
On the battlefield, Han is equally at home firing at enemies with his pistol, firing at enemies with his wit, or firing off ideas on how to get out of the situation. The mix makes him as adept a shooter as he is a supporter, always looking out for his friends (and vice versa).
Outside of battle, Han is an adept smuggler who has a keen knowledge of the criminal underworld and how to operate clandestinely. If there's something that needs transporting, Han and his team are the people to do it.
And if he ever gets access to a vehicle – any vehicle – all bets are off.
Build OVERVIEW
Ancestry
Human - Versatile Heritage
Some builds just rely on the Human ancestry's Skilled, Versatile or Multitalented feats to give them the leg up they need to reach that perfect flavor. Han is one of those, but luckily he's also Human, so it's a perfect match.
Versatile Heritage + Natural Ambition gives Han a few extra toys at level one to get the build off on the right foot. And Multitalented lets us focus on the Trick Driver skills instead of the feats and still pick up the Swashbuckler dedication.
Background
Criminal
This seems maybe a little harsh, but he is a smuggler after all. Criminal gives Underworld lore – an important piece of knowledge for a smuggler. Plus, the real treat: Experienced Smuggler.
Plus, the Dexterity modifier is a plus for a Gunslinger.
Class
Pistolero Gunslinger
Han has to take a few dedications to get the flavor right, but Gunslinger sets a great baseline to add those on top of. After all, as Greedo would tell us, Han is a hell of a shot.
There are other Gunslinger builds on Pop Culture Pathfinder, but the way this one is built really shows the versatility of the Pathfinder ruleset. Take our Tracer build for example, another Pistolero Gunslinger – there's almost no crossover.
Han uses his Gunslinger feats mainly to help himself and his allies out of sticky situations, and capitalize on opportunities when it counts.
Meanwhile, he takes Trick Driver Dedication at level 2 to start his progression toward being a legendary pilot. No other class feats from this dedication will be taken, but it unlocks a lot of great and flavorful skill feats.
Lastly, the build uses the Human Multitalented ancestry feat to take a Swashbuckler dedication at level 9. Precise strikes and finishers aren't compatible with a pistol, or any ranged weapon, so we don't go any further into those feats either. But panache still gives +5 speed and bonuses to dodging through bad guys to make a daring escape.
Skills & General Feats
Has it been said enough so far? Han Solo is a legendary pilot. The Trick Driver dedication gives a Driving lore skill that scales to legendary on its own as Han goes up in levels.
Alongside that, he'll need to be legendary in Society and Thievery to get the goods smuggled without raising eyebrows or alarms.
Legendary: Lore: Driving, Society, Thievery
Master: Deception
Expert: Diplomacy
Attribute Increases
Equipment
Suggested Starting Equipment
Key Spells
Changelog
Related Builds
